


Slabtown

by boot_flipped



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: AU - Freeform, Confessions, Getting Together, Grieving, How Do I Tag, Light Angst, M/M, Sharing a Bed, Vomiting, alcohol use, from the alcohol use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:33:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25211707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boot_flipped/pseuds/boot_flipped
Summary: Prompto was in Lestallum for a quick visit, he ran into a drunk Ignis after a concert. After tense night spent together, they manage to clear the air.
Relationships: Prompto Argentum/Ignis Scientia
Comments: 2
Kudos: 23





	Slabtown

**Author's Note:**

> I was listening to the song [Slabtown by Jared Mees & the Grown Children](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLiDPwgO9oM) and was inspired to write this.

Prompto liked Lestallum, the city was an awesome mix of modern and vintage, small alleyways that anyone but a local would get lost in, and some of the best small music venues he had ever been to. His trip to the city was for a couple of reasons, his adoptive parents were going to be there for a few days, and one of his favorite bands was playing there around the same time, win-win, which was how it felt until he stepped out of the venue with the crowd of people leaving the show.

The night air wasn't cold, but it had a pleasant chill to it, especially after being in a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd of sweaty concert goers. He broke from the herd and wandered beneath a streetlamp to check his phone, it was too late to find transit heading back to Insomnia, so he was going to let his parents know he would be staying the night with them. However before he could message them he heard someone nearby wrenching. After looking around Prompto noticed a man in a long sleeved shirt, and tight leather pants hunched over a nearby trash can, seemingly alone, and being completely ignored by the remaining crowd. Prompto made his way over.

"Hey man, you need help?" Prompto asked gently patting the sick man's shoulder. The man looked up, a miserable expression turned to one of horror as their eyes met.  
"Iggy??" Prompto breathed out in surprise.

"Prompto, hello-" Ignis' drowsy speech was cut off by his body forcing out anything and everything that remained in his stomach.

"Are you alright dude??" Prompto patted his back as a means of support, but Ignis waved him off.

"I’m fine, you can go, jus’ don't tell anyone what you saw." Ignis slurred.

"Dude I can't just leave you here. Where are you staying? I'll take you there." Prompto grabbed Ignis' arm and slung it over his shoulder before gripping the taller man by the waist and effectively supporting a good amount of his weight.

"I wasn't planning on staying in the city." Ignis groaned.

"Were you planning on getting drunk??" Prompto asked bewildered.

"I wasn' going to drink," Ignis grumbled.

"Too late for that I guess. Give me your keys."

"Why?"

"Uh, because you're in no condition to drive,” Prompto was exasperated, “Where were you planning on staying?"

"Hammerhead."

Prompto let out a surprised choke, "Dude have you _been_ to a live show before? That was such a dumb plan! And you _know_ it has to be if _I'm_ the one saying it!"

"You're smart." Ignis said plainly.

"What?" Prompto asked as he walked the both of them towards the nearest major parking area.

"You're not dumb!" Ignis called out lifting his hands above his head, and stumbling backward in the process. Prompto quickly stepped behind Ignis gripping the advisor by the waist to prevent him from falling back.

"Yes sir, whatever you say Lord Scientia," Prompto said absently as he looked around the street until he spotted Ignis' car.

"Ah-ha!" Prompto cried triumphantly when he spotted the sleek black car. when they had approached it Prompto leaned Ignis against the trunk, before he stood strongly in front of the advisor.

"Keys. Now." Prompto demanded his hand held out.

"Bossy," Ignis sighed as he dug his hand into one of the front pockets of his pants. Pants which Prompto had spotted earlier, but were nothing like the normal attire of the man wearing them. Tight black leather, showcasing lithe muscle, and graceful lines, Prompto was a bit surprised he hadn't noticed the protrusion of the keys in his pocket as they were held into place by the restricting confines of stiff material.  
The other pocket he was able to make out the outline of Ignis' phone and wallet, so at least there were small kindnesses. Prompto took the keys from him, unlocked the door and practically dragged Ignis to the passenger's side. He opened the door and helped Ignis into the seat.

"Okay, I'm going to go get you a bottle of water and something to eat so just sit in the car and stay out of trouble, sound good?"

"Still bossy," Ignis sing-songed.

"Yes, I'm bossy because right now I'm the boss. I'll be back in a few minutes." Prompto closed the door, and locked the car with the FOB for good measure before running as fast as he could to the nearest convenience store.

Prompto grabbed two bottles of water, pain killers, Ebony, and a couple bags of chips. He took a bit more time walking back to the car in order to text his parents to let them know he wouldn't need to stay with them for the night.  
When he got into the car Ignis seemed to be flagging, but Prompto forced him to finish a bottle of water and start snacking on some of the chips before he began driving in the direction of Hammerhead.

Thoughts buzzed through Prompto's mind as he drove on the long, empty road. He knew Ignis had been acting strangely the last week or so, he had thought they had gotten close but suddenly Ignis seemed to shut him out almost completely, and it hurt, it hurt more than Prompto had words for. Over the time he and Ignis grew to know eachother better Prompto had begun to care about him, much more deeply than just a friend, so when Ignis put his walls back up stronger than ever, Prompro tried to get over his stupid more-than-a-crush. But seeing Ignis in such a state stirred something in his chest. Ignis was way too responsible to get belligerently drunk in a city so far from home, something must have happened to cause it, but he didn't have the slightest clue as to what.

Prompto had been on the road for about an hour and a half before Ignis woke up from the passenger seat with a jerk, he quickly looked around him before he looked at Prompto.  
"Welcome to the land of the living, you still drunk?" Prompto asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

"A bit," Ignis mumbled before he looked out the window, "Where are we?"

"En route to Hammerhead, you said you were planning on staying there." Prompto tried to keep his voice light and friendly.

"Why are you here?" Ignis spat out harshly.

"That any way to talk to the guy that held your hair back as you barfed into a trashcan?" Prompto tried to laugh, but instead it just came out as a strangled squawk.  
  
"I _what_?" Ignis sounded annoyed.  
  
"You're acting like I'm the enemy here," Prompto glanced to Ignis, his lips downturned in a slight frown, "It's not like I forced you to drink, hell I didn't even know you were in Lestallum."

"Then why were you there?"

"My parents are there for a couple days, and my favorite band was playing tonight." Prompto answered, trying to play off nonchalance, despite the cold weight growing in his stomach. "I gather you don't remember me running into you outside the venue."

"Well if I had we wouldn't be having this imbecilic conversation."

"Tone down the venom dude, just be thankful you didn't end up sleeping on the street." Prompto frowned.

"Well maybe they would have been better." Ignis mumbled as he let his head rest against the window of the car.

A tense silence stretched between them for few minutes before Ignis huffed out a "I need a drink."

"Don't you think you've had enough, you were puking your guts out like an hour ago."

Ignis glared at him before he popped open the glove compartment and snatched out a flask. After opening it he drained the remaining liquor from it, causing the car to smell like alcohol.  
"Whatever." Prompto said under his breath as he cracked open his window.

The air in the car seemed to relax mildly as the alcohol began to relax Ignis. At some point the advisor rolled down his window completely, filling the car with cold night air as he let his fingers float against the wind whipping past. Something in the slump of his shoulders made Ignis seem younger, or rather it made his age show. Prompto gripped the steering wheel tighter as he tried not to think about whatever might have caused the young tactician breakdown to act his age for once.

They reached Hammerhead a little earlier than Prompto had expected, but that was probably due to him breaking the speed limit half the way there. It was nearing 3am as Prompto parked in front of the motel.

"You can go get your room, I'll crash in the back seat." Prompto said as Ignis began to straighten himself out.

"Don't be an idiot, you'd freeze."

"I'd rather freeze than starve, I can't afford a room."

"You can stay in mine." Ignis sounded strained, as if the words physically hurt to say.

"Dude it's fine, you obviously don't want to be near me, I get it. Just, make sure to drink some water and take these when you wake up." Prompto grabbed the plastic bag from the convenience store with the remaining water, painkillers, and can of Ebony.

"I refuse to just leave you out here."

"You're as stubborn as ever." Prompto sighed, the fight very quickly draining from him.

"I'll go get the room key." Ignis stepped from the car swaying slightly before walking to the Motel service window.

Prompto rested his forehead against the steering wheel fighting off the urge to cry. He was tired, he knew Ignis was unobtainable, but he didn't know what he did to earn such venom. A little over a week ago they sat together over coffee abd laughed about stupid things, but now Ignis acted as though he was the bane of his existence.  
Prompto took a steadying breath, he just had to make it until morning, he could get up early and take the long distance bus the rest of the way to Insomnia.

A light tap on the window caused Prompto to jump back. Ignis beckoned him out of the car before disappearing around the back to the trunk. Prompto stepped out and stretched, feeling a stiff ache in his body.  
The trunk slammed closed, and Ignis made his way towards the motel rooms, Prompto stayed behind him by a couple yards. After they had both entered, Prompto flopped himself down into the dingy chair next to the tiny writing desk as Ignis took his bag with him into the bathroom. Prompto ran his hands down his face, he was more exhausted than he had been when first he decided to start running. All the emotions he had been feeling started ebbing away into a manageable numbness, and he let his eyes slip closed as he leaned back in the chair.

"You're going to get sore sleeping like that." The level voice roused Prompto, he hadn't heard Ignis leave the bathroom. The advisor was in a pair of sleep pants, and a tank top, his expression wasn't harsh, something in it was almost sad but otherwise unreadable.

"Yeah," Prompto agreed flatly, he stood up and stretched his arms over his head, "If I can get a pillow and sheet I'll be fine on the floor."

"The bed's big enough for both of us." Ignis said as he began to fold back the blanket and sheets, Prompto saw a couple of marks blooming along the other man's neck.

"You've got, uh," Ignis looked over at him with an eyebrow raised, and Prompto gestured to the same area on his own neck, "You're probably going to want to wear higher collars for a couple days."

Ignis slapped a hand on his neck, a flurry of emotions dancing across his face, which finally settled into something stoney and cold.  
"Ah. right." was his only response, before he went back to fiddling with the sheets.

"Look I know it's none of my business-"

"You're right, it _isn't_ your business." Ignis cut him off.

"Okay, right. Whatever," Prompto stood up and headed to the bathroom. After the door shut behind him he let out a long heavy sigh. He turned to the mirror, and saw the deep purple bags that had formed under his eyes, after a few moments he wrenched his eyes away, and turned on the faucet, instead of doing anything he stared at the water flowing down the drain like it was nothing, almost wishing he could do the same. A knock at the door startled Prompto out of his trance.

"I'm putting a bag out here, there is extra pyjamas and a spare toothbrush." Ignis spoke from the otherside of the door.

Prompto didn't respond, but waited a few moments before he opened the door and grabbed the bag sitting in front of the bathroom door.  
Prompto brushed his teeth, washed his face, and took out his contacts, as he tossed them in the trash he was thankful that he remembered to bring his glasses with him.  
The pajamas were big on him, but he didn't look at the mirror longer than necessary. A week ago he would have been beyond thrilled to see himself in Ignis' clothes, _hell_ a few hours ago even. But the world was no longer tinted pink, so there was no use dwelling on it.  
When Prompto exited the bathroom Ignis was already in bed with the lights off, so Prompto quietly made his way to the empty side, plugging his phone in and setting an alarm for 6am - two hours of sleep was still better than no sleep - after he nestled into the bed as gently as he could, keeping himself along the edge of the mattress as far from Ignis as possible.

"I apologize for the way I've been acting." Prompto cracked open his eye at the sound of Ignis' voice. He stared at the wall as he responded.

"It's fine, if I knew how much you don't like being with me alone with me I'd have just called someone to get you or something."

"It's not like that." Ignis' voice was tight, but not cruel.

"You don't gotta try and cheer me up." Prompto sighed, "I'm worried about you, man. You haven't been yourself lately, and then all this?"

"I'm sorry," Ignis' voice cracked. Prompto sat up in the bed as he tried to get a closer look at Ignis. The light from outside the room barely made it in, but even just by that Prompto could make out the dampness on Ignis' cheeks.

"Dude, what's-" Prompto quickly switched on the lamp on his side of the bed and turned back to Ignis. "Iggy, seriously, what's eating you up?" Prompto rubbed Ignis' bicep, he could feel the tremors in the advisor's body.

"He's gone." Ignis whimpered.

"Gone? Who's gone?" Prompto asked gently.

"My uncle, he-" Ignis choke out a sob, Prompto immediately settled behind him, wrapping his arms around the taller man's waist and squeezing him close.

"I'm so sorry, I had no idea." Prompto pressed his cheek to Ignis' shoulder. Feeling the silent sobs wracking through Ignis.

"N-not many know yet. The King, Marshal Leonis, and Clarus Amicitia are the only ones." Ignis got out, his tears streaming freely.

"You didn't tell Noct, or Gladio?"

"I d-don't want them to worry." Ignis huffed out shakily.

"You can't bottle this kind of stuff in dude, you'll wreck yourself with bad decisions, I speak from experience. I'm so glad I ran into you tonight jeez." Prompto sighed.

"I'm s-sorry." Ignis sobbed out.

"You have nothing to apologize for." Prompto pressed closer.

"I do, I can't believe I treated you the way I did, I just couldn't stand it, I couldn't- I didn't know how-" Ignis' breath caught, but he didn't seem to let it go.

"Iggy you gotta breathe man," Prompto patted his chest lightly, "follow my rhythm, breathe in for 5 seconds through your nose, then 5 seconds out your mouth okay?" Prompto slowed his breathing, pressing his chest against Ignis' back so he could feel the expansion and compression of his lungs. It took a few tries but Ignis eventually managed to steady his breathing. They stayed the way they were, slow breaths in synch, until Ignis turned around in Prompto's arms wrapping his own around the blond's back, resting his head against Prompto's chest. Prompto didn't say anything, but he began slowly running his fingers through Ignis' hair.

Prompto was on the verge of sleep, but his eyes snapped open again as Ignis spoke, "I don't know what I'm going to do without him, he raised me since I was a boy. I knew it was going to happen, he wasn't in the best of health. I just wasn't prepared for it to happen so soon."

"I don't think anyone is quite prepared to lose someone they love." Prompto let his hand linger at the back of Ignis' head, lightly stroking the softened strands of hair, "If anyone can make it through something like this it's you, you’re the strongest person I know."

"I've never met anyone as kind as you Prompto, truly." Ignis yawned.

"Let's get some sleep." Prompto mumbled, already feeling his eyelids drooping, Ignis nodded against his chest, holding Prompto closer.

Prompto's alarm quietly buzzes from his phone on the bedside table, and he lets out a soft groan as he tried to reach for it blindly. It was too far away, so he tried to scoot closer, but a heavy weight against his chest held him in place. He blinked away the sleep from his eyes to see Ignis still clinging securely to him. Prompto managed to stretch out enough to get his finger hooked on the charging cord, so he pulled his phone over and turned off the alarm. Keeping the light from his screen tilted away from Ignis' eyes he starts moogling the bus schedules heading into Insomnia. the next one would be around 7am, and the one after wasn't going out until 4pm. Prompto sighed as he set his phone on the bed next to him, he would need to start getting up if he wanted to try to make the next bus. Prompto's eyes wandered to the man next to him, his heart aching for Ignis. It was sometimes hard to remember the young tactician was only a couple years older than himself. It was evident he was never given a place where he could deal with his emotions, having been raised to think of others first. Prompto's hand found its way to Ignis' hair before he could even think about what he was doing, he gently ran his fingers through the ash blond strands.

"Hm?" Ignis stirred slightly causing Prompto to immediately take his hand back.

"Ignis, I'm going to need to get up soon." Prompto said quietly. The advisor lifted his head, blinking wearily.

"Why?" he grumbled before letting his head drop back down onto Prompto.

"The next bus to Insomnia leaves in 45 minutes."

Ignis shook his head against Prompto mumbling, "Car."

"After everything you think you can stand being around me for the ride back?"

Ignis nodded squeezing Prompto tighter, "Sleep more " Ignis breathed out as his consciousness seemed to fade from him once more. Prompto huffed out the ghost of a laugh before grabbing his phone and setting a new alarm for 10am, after he dropped his phone and shut his eyes he was out like a light.

Prompto's alarm buzzed at the same time Ignis' phone began to chime out. Prompto grunted blindly patting around the bed to shut off the alarm. The warmth against him vanished as Ignis sat up to grab his own phone.  
Prompto opened his eyes, vision fuzzy from his lack of contacts and thr bright light of the sun streaming in through the crack in the curtains on the window. He stretched out with a yawn before sitting up and grabbing his glasses from the bedside table and putting them on.

"I didn't know you wore glasses." Prompto looked over at Ignis who looked amused.

"Yeah, switched to contacts in high school because they're less annoying to deal with." Prompto fidgeted with the frame of his glasses a bit self conscious.

"They suit you."

"Thanks." Prompto smiled slightly before his eyes fell to his hands, "If you want I can still take the bus back to Insomnia, another one comes by later, you were basically still asleep when you said we could go back together."

"That may have been the case, but I still meant it." Ignis said softly, "Unless of course you're uncomfortable with me, that would be perfectly understandable, I haven't been very kind to you recently."

"Don't sweat it dude, I think you've earned every right to be a jerk on occasion."

Ignis huffed out a laugh, "I'll keep that in mind, thank you Prompto." Ignis stood up and made his way into the bathroom.

Prompto stared blankly at his phone replaying the events of the previous night in his head, there were still plenty of moments that stung to think about, but after what they had talked about he really wasn't sure what Ignis thought about him. Did he really treat Prompto like that only because he was hurting, or was there an underlying dislike he had towards Prompto that naturally came out when he didn't have the energy to filter it out? Prompto really couldn't tell.  
"The bathroom is free if you'd like to freshen up, after I think we should get some food from the diner across the street before we head out."

"Yeah, alright sounds good." Prompto said without looking up. He stood up and made his way to the bathroom, but stopped just in front of the doorway. "Before I forget, if you still have that plastic bag from the convenience store there's water, pain killers, and a can of Ebony in it for you."

"Thank you Prompto, that was very thoughtful of you."

"No prob."  
Prompto took a quick shower, and slipped into the clothes he had worn the previous day, he then folded up Ignis' pyjamas as neatly as he could before going back into the room.  
"Thanks for letting me borrow these man, you're always super prepared huh?"

"I try to be, though I'll admit last night was an exception." Ignis took the clothes from Prompto to pack away before giving the room a look to see if he had forgotten anything. Seemingly in the clear Ignis turned towards the door, Prompto spotted the marks on his neck that he had seen the night before.

"Oh hang on a sec Iggy," Ignis looked at him as Prompto approached. Prompto tugged up Ignis' collar a bit so that the hickeys were covered fully, leaving the taller man frowning with a slight pink tint to his cheek.

"Thank you. Admittedly not one of my proudest moments."

"Hey as long as you were safe, not that any of it is my business." Prompto forced out a chuckle, rubbing the back of his head.

"Nothing happened." Ignis responded quickly, before he straightened up slightly nudging the frames of his glasses flancing away.

"Hey, you don't need to defend yourself dude, no judgment here." Prompto held his hands up in a gesture of good will with a small smile on his lips. Ignis' eyebrows drew together slightly as he looked at Prompto, as though he wanted to say something, instead he let out a small sigh and turned back to the door.

The drive back to Insomnia was more or less uneventful, Prompto took some pictures on his phone, they chatted lightly, and before Prompto knew it they were within the city walls. It wasn't much longer until Ignis' car was in front of Prompto's parents' house.

"Hey Iggy, I get it if you've seen enough of me, but I was just wondering, would you like to come over for dinner tonight?"

Ignis gave him a warm smile, causing Prompto's heart to leap into his throat.  
"Are you sure? I'd have thought you were sick of me by now.”

"I could never be sick of you dude, besides, I want to cook for you. I guess I also thought that maybe it would be good to know you're not alone." Prompto fideted with the hem if his shirt, tugging at a loose thread, "Don't feel pressured to say yes or anything, I just thought- I don't know nevermnd I'm stupid." A warm hand covered Prompto's, causing him to look over to the other man.

Ignis had yet another unreadable expression, but something akin to hope seemed to reflect in his eyes, "I'd be delighted, should I bring anything?"

"Just yourself, does 7 sound good?”

"7 sounds perfect, I'll see you tonight then Prompto."

"Yeah, see you tonight." Prompto smiled.

Inviting Ignis over had been a whim, and Prompto realized his house was in no state for visitors. He tidied up as quickly as he could before making a quick grocery run. He picked up ingredients for spaghetti because it was easy and fast to make. When he got home he hopped into the shower and changed into some clean clothes before getting to work on cooking. He could make an easy sauce on his own, but the meatballs were frozen so he just baked them alongside the garlic bread. As the pasta boiled and the sauce simmered he quickly fixed up a simple salad.  
At 7 o'clock on the dot a knock came from the door.

"Coming!" Prompto called out as he finished mixing the noodles in the sauce, he wiped his hands before dashing to the door.

Ignis was wearing different clothes from earlier, and he held a bottle of wine in one hand, and a small bouquet of colorful flowers in the other. It took several moments for Prompto to compose himself before he choked out, "Ignis, welcome!" He stepped to the side, to let the other man in before shutting it behind them.

"These are for you." Ignis said, holding out the wine and flowers.

"Gods, you didn't have to, that's so sweet!" Prompto took the flowers first taking a deep whiff of the perfumed petals, "These are so pretty, and the wine will go great with dinner!"

Prompto led Ignis over to the kitchen, quickly finding an empty jar to put the flowers in, as well as a corkscrew. He then began looking through the cabinets in the hopes of finding wine glasses, and after a small search he found two stemless glasses, which he brought to the table. Ignis was standing next to one of the chairs looking around the room quietly.

"Sorry, my place is kind of plain, my parents aren't really home often so they never really decorated or anything."

"Your home is lovely Prompto, thank you so much for inviting me."

"I should be the one thanking you!" Prompto laughed as he grabbed the bottle opener and wine, "Would you like to do the honors while I serve up dinner?"

"Certainly, what is on the menu for tonight? It smells lovely."

"I'm definitely not as good a cook as you, but I make a mean spaghetti." Prompto smiled as he grabbed a couple of plates and severed a bit of everything on each.

"I'm sure it's wonderful,” Ignis smiled, looking almost nostalgic for a moment, “Actually it was one of my Uncle's favorites."

Prompto set the plates on the table as Ignis poured the wine. Once they both settled into their seats Prompto held up his glass.

"If this was his favorite then it's only appropriate to give him a toast!"

Ignis gave him a fond smile as he lifted his glass as well, "To my dear Uncle Ventus, may he rest in peace."

"And be eating boat loads of his favorite food in the afterlife." Pompto added as they gently clinked their glasses together.

After taking a sip of wine Ignis placed his glass down and looked over his food, "I must admit I'm surprised you can cook."

"Not really, I can only make like three things that are actually edible." Prompto laughed. He held his breath as he watched Ignis take his first bite.

"This is wonderful, thank you for cooking." Ignis smiled, Prompto quickly looked away and took a bite of his own.

The pair ate in silence, the mood considerably lighter compared to the night before. Ignis insisted that he help with the dishes so as Prompto washed them Ignis rinsed them and put them in the drying rack. They finally settled in the living room with the rest of the wine.

"Prompto, thank you so much for everything, really." Ignis said as he gazed into his glass of wine.

"No problem at all dude. Maybe once I learn some more I can cook for you again."

"That would be lovely, but I wasn't only referring to tonight. While I'm embarrassed about my composure as of late, I think I really needed to talk to someone, but I just didn't know how, so I instead bottled it up, and well, you saw how that turned out " Ignis frowned.  
"You don't need to be embarrassed, I can't imagine what it was like. Of course you were bound to reach a breaking point, you're only human. "

"I must admit, my uncle's health wasn't the only thing that was causing me distress as of late, but his death seemed to tip me over the edge."

"Oh yeah? Wanna talk about it? I'm a great listener." Prompto gave him an encouraging smile, which Ignis returned although subdued.

"That's the thing, it's something about you. I've been fighting with myself over it for awhile, and with the events of last night it seems to only further back my conclusion."

"O-oh yeah?" Prompto did his best to sound light hearted, but something in his chest felt heavy. The night had been going well, it made him believe that Ignis might actually have been fine with him, that they might actually have been friends.

Ignis took a deep breath before he began to speak in a quiet voice, "When you first befriended the Prince I had my doubts as to what your motivations were, of course it's my job to be skeptical of anyone trying to earn favor with the Crown. It didn't take long to realize you weren't trying to earn favor with the _Crown_ , you were simply trying to earn favor with _Noct_."  
Ignis' gaze was still on his wine but it softened nonetheless, "I grew accustomed to having you around, and before I knew it I _craved_ your presence, and I so desperately _wanted_ your attention." Ignis met his gaze and held it.

Prompto couldn't breathe. He couldn't understand what Ignis was trying to tell him. Or maybe he could understand but he still wanted to hear it said clearly.

"I had never felt like that about anyone in my life," Ignis continued, still holding Prompto's gaze, "The feeling just kept getting stronger, and I got scared of it." Ignis broke eye contact, looking back down at his glass, he took a long drink of wine before he spoke again, "When my uncle passed away last week, I had a bit of a crisis, about my duties, about my mortality, and about my emotions. My uncle was supportive of my life and my choices, but he had similar duties to mine, and I saw how it affected his relationships with other people, and how little time he had to share, it made me worried about my own relationships, and what involving someone in my hectic life would mean and how hard it would be for me to put them first."  
Ignis sighed before finishing the rest of the wine in his glass, "I was upset, and angry. I missed my uncle, and I thought I could get rid of my feelings. I went to Lestallum to try. I had one too many drinks and I met someone there, I don't remember his name, or if he even told me, we danced together and shared several kisses," Ignis' hand rubbed the hidden hickeys on his neck, "It felt so dirty, so wrong, I felt like I was betraying you." Ignis set his glass down on the coffee table, he leaned forward and gently took the glass from Prompto's hand so he could set it on the table and take both of Prompto's hands into his own.

Prompto's heart was beating a thousand miles a minute, his eyes glued to Ignis' face. The advisor's cheeks were dusted pink as his eyes met Prompto's.

"Prompto, I am going to keep apologizing for how I acted because you didn't deserve it, and more importantly you were the last person on Eos I ever wanted to treat that way. I was so confused and hurt, but those excuses don't rectify my wrongs, and I will understand completely if you wish to shut me out after this, but I think I'm falling in love with you."

The world seemed to drop away from Prompto, his ears began to ring as he stared into Ignis' eyes trying to find the lie, searching for even a hint of untruth. He could feel his hands begin to tremble in Ignis' grasp.

"You... me?" Prompto whispered. Ignis drew back slightly, but Prompto clutched onto Ignis' hands as tight as he could.  
"I'm- I've been- You're just-" Prompto tried to speak, but his words weren't coming out. Prompto leapt forward, flinging his arms around Ignis' neck, clinging on as tightly as he could, draped halfway across the advisor's lap.

Warm arms wound around Prompto's waist causing the blond to let out a shuddering breath.  
It took Prompto a couple minutes to regain himself, but Ignis simply held him close, not saying anything, and not rushing him to speak. Prompto loosened his grip slightly, resting his head on Ignis' shoulder, his hands sliding down to rest on his chest, and Ignis still held him.

"I thought we- I thought you-" Prompto tried to speak again, words still failing him. Ignis ran a hand up and down his back gently encouraging him to speak.  
"Iggy I've liked you for so long, and I thought you liked me too," Prompto finally began quietly, "but then you shut me out completely, I almost felt like a ghost, we would be in the same room and you wouldn't even look at me, I wondered what I did wrong. I feel stupid, thinking everything was about me, but I thought it'd be fine if you hated me, as long as I could help you."

Ignis' breath hitched, and he held Prompto tighter, one of his hands settling at the back of Prompto's head. Ignis trembled beneath Prompto's hands, Prompto curled his fists clutching to Ignis' shirt, "I would never hate you Prompto, I loathe that I made you feel that way."

"I know you're going through so much pain right now Iggy, I just want to be there for you in any way you'll have me, I would say I'm falling in love with you, but the truth is I've been in love with you for a long time." Prompto sat back a bit, tracing his hands up Ignis' chest, his neck, his jaw, until he held Ignis' face in his hands, looking into beautiful green eyes, with dampened dark lashes. Prompto traced along the other man's cheek bones, he glanced at his lips, before looking back into his eyes.

Something fell into place as they both eased into each other, their lips meeting in the middle, fitting together so naturally it was as if they were made specifically for the other. The kiss was chaste, but lingering, Prompto felt the phantom warmth of Ignis' lips on his own even after they had pulled away, and Prompto's hands slid back to rest on Ignis' chest, their eyes locked with one another's.  
Time and space stood still. Nothing seemed to matter to Prompto beyond the man in front of him. But slowly his senses came back to him, and he felt the telltale heat of a blush on his cheeks. Ignis smiled warmly and leaned in to give Prompto another chaste kiss.

"I'm, uh," Prompto stammered, as he stared at his hands.

"Would you do me the honor of going on a date with me?" Ignis asked.

Prompto looked into Ignis eyes as they shone with happiness, and he couldn't help but let out a snort, "Only if you do me the honor of being my boyfriend."

Ignis gave Prompto another sweet kiss, Prompto could feel the curve of Ignis lips as he smiled.

"I believe that can be arranged."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> I've been trying to push through some writer's block so this is definitely not my best work, but I enjoyed writing it!


End file.
